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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Just a quick post to share a past nail of the day. I've been really busy with school this week and if that wasn't enough, my daughter has the flu. I actually feel slightly sick myself, so I'll keep this short. I'm behind on posting manis and swatches, and I hope to update more frequently next week.

This mani was inspired by Ivana*. She does the prettiest color combinations using this image plate. I stamped with an old school Sally Hansen Chrome from the dollar store.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Are yall tired of seeing the crackles yet, lol? Here's my mani from a few weeks ago. I wanted to try all the crackles at once and this is what I came up with. I debated on posting because I wasn't crazy about the results, but here goes.

I used a Kiss striper to divide the colors and stamped half of each nail with XL plate B.

Monday, March 21, 2011

I didn't want this day to end without mentioning that I've been blogging for one year! I can't believe that I've managed to fit blogging into my lifestyle. I'm not the most technically savvy person, and to tell the truth, I probably would've never started blogging if it wasn't for my instructor. As part of my management class, I had to create a blog and update it weekly. I never knew those skills would come in handy.

To celebrate, I'll be having a giveaway as a small thank you to my subscribers. I'm not exactly sure how I'll set it up. I thought about having a nail art contest but I want everyone to be able to participate, so I'm pretty sure the winner will be drawn using Random. I'm having a great time collecting items but its taking longer than I thought, so the giveaway will be sometime in April.

I also wanted to share my weekend mani. This is somewhat similar to the mani in my first post, which was made using real black lace. The white lace is not as racy but its still cute. Hope you like it!

Woohoo Happy Spring! I hope the sun made it to your area. It's really beautiful here and I'm loving the weather we've had lately. It's a great day for swatches, so today I'll share the first half of China Glaze's Anchor's Away Collection, Knotty Nauticals.

Starboard. Gorgeous green creme that applied with 2 coats. The color reminds me of freshly grown grass. I'm really becoming a fan of green polishes. This is my favorite from the collection.

Lighthouse. Bright yellow glass speck. I think this one would look great layered over other colors to wake them up. I like to think of it as sunshine in a bottle.

Life Preserver. Bright poppy creme that is opaque in 2 coats. I like to call this the happy color. Another favorite.Hey Sailor. My camera couldn't capture this beauty correctly. It wanted to make it a jelly but in reality its a vibrant red creme. Two coats.First Mate. Intense navy creme. I like how it's dark but still vibrant. A surprise favorite. Two coats.Ahoy. Intense pink with glass specks, my camera couldn't handle the color. Its more of a dark magenta.

A closer view of the glass specks.

China Glaze did a great job capturing the nautical theme with this line. I wouldn't have expected a pink but it was a fun turn from the usual. First Mate, Starboard and Life Preserver were the standouts. Overall the collection was well done.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Happy Belated St. Patrick's Day! For those of you that celebrated, I hope you're not having too bad of a time recuperating =)

Today I have the Stroke of Luck Collection by Diamond Cosmetics. But first I wanted to share yesterday's Holiday mani. Its not quite clovers but I thought it suited the clover theme, or at least it looks like clovers from a distance.

Four Leaf Clover (#368). A Festive Kelly Green that went on with two coats. This is in natural light without a topcoat. It went on smooth and applied easily.

Even more beautiful in direct sunlight.

Lady Luck (#370). A dusty peach with matching micro glitter. It almost reminds me of caramel. Only two coats without a topcoat. Unfortunately my camera didn't capture the glitter very well.

But here's a close-up of the glitter.

Once in a Blue Moon (#369). My favorite from the collection. A dark Juniper creme that also went on with two coats. This one dried with a high gloss, super shiny!Overall, I think it's a great collection. This was my first time using DC polishes and I must say that I'm impressed. They all applied well and went smoothly. Once in a Blue Moon was the stand out for me. I can see myself wearing this often because the color is so beautiful!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Hello everyone! I'm in a great mood today because I had an almost effortless day! Tuesdays are my longest day of the week. I'm in class from 9-5pm straight. Can you imagine that? In my last class we have to "randomly" give group presentations. We're given a topic a week in advance and we have to research, present and defend our answers. The presentation portion isn't very difficult but it's a challenge to defend your decisions because there are so many variables, many of which you never considered. Well, my group was selected today and our presentation was flawless! I'm super excited because I'm done presenting for the year, at least in that class, which is the most difficult.

Anyways, I also wanted to share my nail of the day. After I saw so many beautiful swatches I ran out and purchased Lightning Bolt. I read a lot of comments about the opacity but it looks awesome over silver chrome. My nails were so bright today I couldn't stop staring at them. I used 1 coat of Lightening Bolt over 1 coat of LA Colors LIVE. This is the end of day one, so you'll notice some shrinkage due to Poshe. The ring finger is accented with China Glaze Fairy Dust.

The rules are easy. Just donate $1 or whatever amount you like to any of the 5 Charity Organizations: American Red Cross, Save the Children, International Medical Corps Emergency Response Fund, Salvation Army or Global Giving's Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. I will draw one winner. The winner must email me a copy of their receipt as proof of donation .

Guidelines:1. Make a minimum donation of $12. Complete the form below3. One winner will be selected using Random.Org. If the winner cannot provide a copy of their proof of donation, dated before the end of the drawing, another winner will be chosen.4. Please do not email me until the end of the drawing. Only the winner should email me.

You can blog/post this on your sidebar but it will be a random act of kindness. There will be 1 entry per person.

This give-a-way ends on April 22nd at 5pm US Central time. Open Internationally.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with any of the above organizations and I will not receive any monetary proceeds. This is a random act of kindness and a small way for me to help.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Last week I picked up one of the new Finger Paints. I thought I wanted the orange shimmer but when I saw them in person Aren't You Glad-iolous followed me home. I'm not sure what the name is supposed to mean but I laughed a little when I read it. Usually my new polishes sit in storage for awhile but I was anxious to give it a try. It's a thick and gorgeous blueberry-lilac cream.

To my surprise it went on with one coat and dried in about 15 minutes. This is the first time I haven't used a quick dry in months! I topped it off with Essie Matte About You and stamped with one of the old school Sally Hansen chrome polishes, Royal Purple Chrome.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Hey guys. I just found out about this greatZoya deal. In honor of International Women's Day the Spring 2011 Intimate Collection will be $25. How cool is that! They are sold out right now but all orders received before 12:30pm ET will be fulfilled. There's also free shipping! It's today only!!!! Details are below:

International Women's Day!

UPDATE - We have sold out initial quantities -We don't want anyone to miss out on this great deal! We are going to keep the offer going! All orders placed after 12:30PM EST on 3/8/2011 may take an additional 7 days to ship but will be fulfilled. You can still take part in this great offer until 11:59PM EST!

Each and every Zoya color is inspired by remarkable women so in their honor we name each and every Zoya Nail Polish with a woman's name.

Celebrate the great women in your life on March 8th - International Women's Day! This 100 year old holiday is traditionally celebrated by giving small gift to the women that are important in your life. On this Women's Day we honor you, our fans and customers with a big gift at a small price - the entire intimate collection at a special price of $25 with free shipping.

Here's how it works:

Add one " International Women's Day - Intimate Collection" to your shopping cart. Once in your shopping cart enter the code: ZOYAWD the price will be reduced to 25.00 and you will receive free standard ground shipping .(Limit 1 per customer) You must enter the code to redeem the offer. Then just complete the checkout process. Remember only one "International Women's Day - Intimate Collection" will be discounted. Offer available only while supplies last.

*Online promotion only. Consumers only, Continental US only, Valid Credit card with sufficient funds needed to process order. Limit one "International Women's Day - Intimate Collection" per customer. Code: ZOYAWD MUST be entered at time of purchase to redeem offer. No refunds or exchanges. Any additional Women's Day - Intimate Collections can be purchased at retail price. Offer Valid 3/8/2011 ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST. Non-Transferable. Not Valid with any other promotions or offers. Please allow up to 14 business days for delivery. For complete details see www.zoyanailpolish.blogspot.com

Monday, March 7, 2011

I wanted to share my nail "stickers" of the day by Broadway Nails. I picked these bad girls up from Walgreens for about $5.50. This design reminds me of Sally Hansen Flower Power nail strips, but they are more vibrant and less pixelated. Like the Salon Effects they are super easy to apply, but you get 28 stickers instead of 16, so you can make a few more mistakes.

I really like this design but they are not as sturdy as the Sally Hansen nail strips. I placed them over a base coat and then added a topcoat to help the mani last a little longer. This is the end of day 1 and they are holding up okay, but I'm starting to see them lift near the base of the nail. I planned on doing a wear test but I'm getting antsy about painting my nails. I'll probably change them tomorrow.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

How are you today? I'm doing well, but I'm super exhausted because I started working out again. My goal is to exercise at least 3 days a week. Right now that's easy to do but it gets tricky when school picks up. I try to keep my workouts at 30 minutes max. Its not the best routine, but its pretty decent, and I manage to squeeze in the treadmill, elliptical and a few crunches in a half-hour.

Anyhow, I finally got my hands on the China Glaze Crackles and of course I had to try out Broken Hearted first. It's much brighter in person than I realized, almost neon. So I paired it with Neon Greenlight by Studio-M. The style sorta reminds me of the 80's Glam Rock Era.

My daughter also wanted to share her mani from earlier in the week. I was a little sad at first because she hasn't asked for a mani in quite a while. She's also fallen into the habit of biting her nails, but hopefully polishing them more often will change that. For her tiny fingers I used Zoya Sweet and Essence "Hide Bella Hide" (this name cracks me up, lol). She was super excited when I finished and couldn't wait to show her friends. I think she'll be asking for more mani's again, or at least I hope so.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

I can't believe its March already. The year is flying by so fast and before you know it St. Patrick's Day will be here. I'm not Irish, but I enjoy celebrating in the festivities with green popcorn, food and drinks!

Today I have a simple St. Patrick's mani to share. For the base I used Zoya Suvi, a beautiful dark emerald green. Then I highlighted the tips with a gold striper and stamped with the four-leaf clover from M22.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

CSN Stores would like to present one of my lucky readers with a $40 gift code to shop at any of their stores!

There are 2 requirements: 1. You must be a follower.2. You must go to one of CSN's 200+ stores and tell me what you would buy! You can use your gift code to purchase whatever you like such as: baby accessories, pet furniture, or a luxury gift for yourself such as an Eames lounge chair. The choice is yours!

Optional entry: 3. Blog post or side bar (2 additional entries)

This giveaway is open to USand Canadian readers only. Sorry International Readers, I will be hosting a Birthday Giveaway next month that you can enter.

Let's get started: First, select your colors. I chose blue, green, purple & gold Orly polishes. Click here to see the complete list. You can use whatever colors you like! I think this mani would also look great in purple & gold with blue dots/highlights. Don't be afraid to mix it up!

Paint your basecoat and 1 coat of white or off-white polish. The white will intensify the nail color and help protect your nails from stains.

Paint 3 columns of small stripes, alternating each color.

Continue your stripes until your nail is full. You can make more or less rows depending on your taste and nail length. Don't worry about it being perfect. The stamped image and topcoat will perfect the mani for you!

Let's get to stamping!

Stamp the image from plate M70.

Keep stamping until the nail is full. If you have longer nails you may need 4-5 stamps, shorter nails 1-2 stamps. Don't worry about perfecting your stamps. It will still look great :)

Using your highlight polish/paint, draw lines in the middle of the loops/eyes. I choose Orly Glitz & Glamour and used the brush from the polish bottle. For thinner stripes, use a toothpick dipped in polish and drag it in the middle of the loop. I like this effect the best because it looks more 3-D.

Allow the polish to dry for 10 minutes, then apply your favorite topcoat and you're done!!! Here's the end result.

Ta-dah! A super easy and eye catching mani. This is great if you're not a perfect polisher or stamper. The loopy lines are imperfect so mistakes are not very noticeable. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Click here to see the completed mani.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Just a quick post to share my mani of the day. I've been meaning to do this mani for awhile but I kept forgetting. It may look complicated but its quite easy to do. I like the dramatic effect and how well the colors mimic the beauty of the bird.